Rotten Tomatoes ranks Miyazaki's films (or most of them)

[TheGreenMan]

I love the fact the lowest one has a 86% rating:

http://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/ponyo/news/1837420/total_recall_hayao_miyazakis_best_movies

Agree, or would your rankings be different?

[tadakichi]

Agree, or would your rankings be different?

Ranking films by their Tomatometer scores isn't exactly foolproof. Does Kiki's 100% score with 15 critics make it a better-reviewed film than Spirited Away's 97% with 153 critics? Though I suppose it makes sense with Rotten Tomatoes being a site whose main purpose is to aggregate critics' reviews.

Anyway, since ranking stuff is always fun, here's my ranking, with Howl's Moving Castle excluded since I've only seen bits and pieces of it:

8. The Castle of Cagliostro
The only Miyazaki film that I stopped watching midway through. Admittedly I've never been able to get into the whole Lupin III franchise.

7. Porco Rosso
Not a bad film, but I found it a little bit confusing and never really got into the setting and characters.

6. Nausicaa of the Valley of the Wind
I'm lukewarm on the film itself, but the story of its genesis as related in the DVD extras leaves me in awe of Miyazaki's talent. At the time, it was impossible to get an anime movie made unless it was based on a successful existing property. So Miyazaki created the Nausicaa manga--a classic of the medium--in order to make the film possible.

4. (tie) Kiki's Delivery Service and My Neighbor Totoro
Both charming films that leave you feeling better after you've watched them than before.

3. Castle in the Sky
Part of me wants to rank this #1 since it doesn't get nearly as much respect as the next two entries, but I've got to be honest here. Still, this is one of the best adventure movies ever made.

2. Princess Mononoke
The first Miyazaki film I ever saw, and still one of my favorites. Thematically similar to Nausicaa, but a much better film IMHO.

1. Spirited Away
Visually the most impressive film on this list, both technically and artistically. Probably the most memorable soundtrack as well.

[Ashyukun]

Nausicaa has always been my favorite, with Laputa not far behind. I'm just glad they completely left off the excruciating long and preachy Pom Poku Tanuki completely. That's the only Ghibli film I'd never watch a second time...

[tadakichi]

I'm just glad they completely left off the excruciating long and preachy Pom Poku Tanuki completely.

Well, it's supposed to be a ranking of Miyazaki films, not Ghibli films... Pom Poko being directed by Isao Takahata IIRC.

[AVPen]

Well, here's my list of Miyazaki favorites:

8. Princess Mononoke
7. The Castle of Cagliostro
6. Spirited Away & Howl's Moving Castle (tie)
5. My Neighbor Totoro
4. Castle in the Sky
3. Nausicaa of the Valley of the Wind
2. Kiki's Delivery Service
1. Porco Rosso

[EmperorBrandon]

Hmm... I think this would be my ranking, roughly... (hard to say, since there's several I haven't seen in a long time)

1. Spirited Away
2. Kiki's Delivery Service
3. Nausicaa of the Valley of the Wind
4. Castle of Cagliostro
5. Porco Rosso
6. Castle in the Sky
7. Princess Mononoke
8. My Neighbor Totoro
9. Howl's Moving Castle

[TalonG4]

I'd rank My Neighbor Totoro as first. Especially with the Disney dub, it's made it a much more charming movie which isn't easy because it was pretty charming to begin with.
2nd would be Kiki's Delivery Service. It used to be first but 2nd place on this pile isn't bad at all.
3rd would be Castle in the Sky (Laputa). It gets better each time I see it.
4th would be probably Nausicca or maybe Whisper of the Heart. I've seen the latter only once, although while it's a Ghibli movie, it's not a Miyazaki one so I guess it doesn't count.

Everything else is after that. The rest are all great movies and favorites of mine.
I have yet to see Porco Rosso which may actually be a crime in some countries. I haven't seen Pom Poko either.

[DJ_72]

I'm not sure how much stock to put in those rankings, as some of those films were DVD only releases and don't have as big a pool of reviews to draw from.

But go, Kiki! My favorite!!! :)

Hard for me to decide after that...they're all so good!
Maybe Spirited Away and Ponyo next...

[LordNoir]

Here's my list, taking out Porco Rosso since I haven't seen it yet.

8. Castle in the Sky (Laputa)
I love the film, but I frankly did not like the dub track for the version I saw (I've only seen the Japanese dub).

7. Castle of Cagliostro
I've honestly never been able to get into the Lupin series (mostly because of the art style), but Miyazaki put it into something I could watch and actually follow.

6. My Neighbor Totoro
I think I was probably just a bit too old when I saw this film for the first time. While the art was beautiful, I found the pacing of the story to be a little bit too slow for my tastes.

5. Nausicaa of the Valley of the Wind
I actually only saw this film for the first time very recently (within the last week), and had very few problems with it. However, it didn't impress me nearly so much as the films later on this list and I found a few things not clearly explained. After asking a close friend of mine who has the manga about these, he was able to clear up my confusion, but I feel these should've been mentioned in the film.

4. Princess Mononoke
I saw this film once when I was young and found myself for some reason terrified of the kodama. After a few years, I rewatched the film and was actually able to complete it. I know they're supposed to be harmless, but something about them just freaks me out a little bit inside.

3. Howl's Moving Castle & Spirited Away (tie)
Ok, I don't feel that Howl gets enough credit in most of these countdowns. The reason it's tied with Spirited Away is because they each irk me for the same reason: one voice on one track. For Howl, I love the English track, but I don't enjoy Calcifer's Japanese voice. For Spirited Away, I love the Japanese track, but I hate Chihiro's English voice. I suppose if one wants to get extremely technical, Howl would be slightly higher on my preferences because Calcifer is a supporting character, and therefore doesn't have nearly as many lines (though he's very important to the story), and therefore doesn't hurt my ears nearly so much as hearing Chihiro speak throughout the film.

1. Kiki's Delivery Service
When I saw this film for the first time, I actually watched it in the French dub,Kiki la Petite Sorciere, and I was so amazed by it that I bought the region 2 dvd while I was living in Paris. I still have it to this day, though it sits in its case most of the time. The English and Japanese dubs are both fantastic, and I was surprised to find that Kiki didn't receive nearly as much hype as Spirited Away for its release in the US. This is my personal favorite Miyazaki film and is one that I would often show my friends to introduce them to anime.

[Soufriere]

Ah, Miyazaki. Asking me to rank these films is like asking me to name my favourite pets or something. But I'll try.

I have not seen Porco Rosso or Ponyo yet, so I can't rank them. So, going from "not-best" to "best"...

8. Kiki's Delivery Service. Yeah it's at the bottom, but not because it's a bad film. I just don't like it as much as the others.

7. My Neighbor Totoro. I was well into my 20's when I saw this, so the whole childhood wonder thing escapes me a bit.

6. Castle of Cagliostro. I'm a huge Lupin III fan, and it's a good film, but it lacks the polish of later Miyazaki movies.

5. Howl's Moving Castle. Most folks rank this one at the bottom of their lists. Screw them. This is a very good film.

4. Nausicaä of the Valley of the Wind. This would rank higher except I have the manga and much prefer it to the film.

3. Spirited Away. I really don't want to rank this movie as I high as I have, since I can't stand Chihiro. But the visuals, man.

2. Castle in the Sky. This one has I think the best rewatch value of any of Miyazaki's films.

1. Princess Mononoke. I think the reason I really like this one is that it's just so dark and violent compared to his other stuff.

[JTurner]

At the risk of being late to the party, I'll list my favorites (note that I will not be doing them in a Top Ten order, as I feel that doing so is too demeaning to my appreciation of these movies.

Castle in the Sky -- This movie's got everything: mystery, adventure, two plucky protagonists, villains, great music, sidesplitting comedy, gorgeous animation, and a terrific musical score. There are so many scenes that I really enjoy in this film, from the opening airship attack to the railroad chase to the robot attack to the exploration of the titular structure to the climactic finale. And, at the risk of disagreeing with someone above me, I actually think Disney's dub is pretty terrific and gets more flak than it deserves. (I won't recap my thoughts, so I'll just post my review to it: http://www.mania.com/aodvb/showthread.php?t=84001)

My Neighbor Totoro -- A very precious film to me because Totoro himself reminds me of a pet guinea pig I used to have (no, he wasn't huge and didn't roar thunderously or jump or run up trees, etc.), but he was every bit as gentle and cuddly. The scene where Mei meets Totoro is the spitting image of me holding my pet in a similar way. The relationships developed in this movie are beautifully done, and I really love how Miyazaki depicts the two sisters as real people. I have a hard time deciding which dub I like better, the JAL/Streamline dub, or the Disney one (I like both equally). My thoughts on both are here: http://www.mania.com/aodvb/showthread.php?t=83604)

Kiki's Delivery Service -- My first major introduction to Miyazaki's work. I saw a trailer for it on a Disney video I own, and I was curious about the movie, so I went and rented it. The rest is pretty much history. It's a delightful tale which somehow manages to be engrossing in spite of the fact that it's a "slice-of-life" story. The real heart of the story is Kiki's growth from an insecure, moody little girl to a confident young woman. And of course, Phil Hartman as Jiji in the dub cracks me up every time I listen to it. (I have yet to write up my impressions about the dub, though.)

Princess Mononoke -- I had the privelege of seeing this spectacular film on the bigscreen, complete with Miramax's amazing dub (I have yet to write an article about it). As an epic, it is deep and thoughtful, but as a movie-going experience it is phenomenal. It was also the first "adult" movie that I actually enjoyed. Prior to this, I was very leary about "adult" anime since I had a very unpleasant experience being sick to my stomach at the age of 13 when I saw Akira, but this film isn't anywhere nearly as bloody or violent. That it is a beautiful movie all around also contributes to my adoration of this movie. It's one of my absolute faves.

Nausicaa of the Valley of the Wind -- It is interesting to compare this movie with Mononoke, because in many ways, it is a prototype for the latter film. Despite being somewhat dated in places, it still holds up very well to this day; the artwork is rich with detail and imagination, the story is meaningful, and it really isn't hard to see why Nausicaa was Animage's favorite heroine. Like the male protagonist in Mononoke, she is a super-kind, understanding soul who wants to solve problems through any other way than violence. Once upon a time, this film was infamously known as "Warriors of the Wind", an edited version which cut 30 minutes of footage, renamed the characters, and altered the storyline. And from what I recently saw, the voice work on the old dub is not very good at all; Disney's version is far better than that--and to think it took 20 years for the improved version to surface! (Again, though, I have yet to write an article about this.)

Whisper of the Heart -- Although Miyazaki never directed this film, this still is up there, because he wrote the screenplay. I never expected to be as charmed with it as I was. The inner struggles of the protagonist, Shizuku, from her discovery of first love to her determination to write her first novel (at the expense of her school grades) are depicted in a way that anyone can identify with. I also really dig the "Country Road" song. It's handled very well, too, in Disney's dub. (http://www.mania.com/aodvb/showthread.php?t=92776)

The Castle of Cagliostro -- While not a Ghibli film, it still counts as a Miyazaki film. It's fast-paced, funny, exciting, and very intriguing. I've only seen the AniMaze dub Manga released, but I found it very enjoyable despite the excess of profanity.

My least favorite Miyazaki films (don't get me wrong, I DO like them very dearly; it's just that I don't watch these movies as much.)

Porco Rosso -- The first time I saw the movie in Japanese, I really didn't connect with it. Even though I liked it even more when I saw it with Disney's dub, I still can't bring myself to really count this as one of my favorite Miyazaki films. That said, it is a beautifully animated film, and I really like Kimberly Williams-Paisley as Fio.

Spirited Away -- Even though I agree that it is a magnificent film overall and that it deserved the Oscar it won, I just can't go back to this movie. I like it, but just not as much as the other Miyazaki films I've seen. Chihiro is a bit too whiney as well. Still, there's no denying that the animation is very imaginative and colorful, and that there is a lot of symbolism to be found in the film.

Howl's Moving Castle -- Like Porco, I was initially disappointed when I saw the film. I was expecting another epic adventure like Laputa and Mononoke. That said, it HAS grown on me a little bit, but not enough for me to consider it one of Miyazaki's best.

Ponyo -- The first half, from the opening shot of the ocean to the scenes where the title character and Sosuke are sharing dinner together is classic Miyazaki, but it gradually goes downhill in the second half, leading to a disappointingly rushed and anticlimactic conclusion. (Miyazaki's other works have had far more "complete" and emotionally satisfying finishes than this one and, to a lesser extent, Howl.) I did like the film, but it's not the director's finest. I have a few issues with the dub, but otherwise, it's pretty good overall. (More on it right here at http://www.mania.com/aodvb/showthread.php?t=95173)

[brycec1701]

We saw Ponyo today. It was fun and felt very Miyazaki-like. The story was engaging and kept you guessing at how it would end, which was sudden, yet satisfying. Overall, I would not rank it as the best of his work, but I would not rank it as the worst.

I recommend that everyone go see it!

[Sugei]

We saw Ponyo today. It was fun and felt very Miyazaki-like. The story was engaging and kept you guessing at how it would end, which was sudden, yet satisfying. Overall, I would not rank it as the best of his work, but I would not rank it as the worst.

I recommend that everyone go see it!

I have not had the chance yet to see the dubbed version of Ponyo but I have seen an english subbed version of the film and I would rank it right up there with my favorite Miyazaki films. It really is a film intended for small children yet I still found it to be immensly enjoyable. Just a really sweet, charming, cute film that warms the heart. Highly recommend it to anyone who has not yet seen it.

I will be watching the dubbed version sometime this week. I am quite curious if they changed the childlike dialogue in anyway. Which would be a shame. Hopefully not.

[Ashyukun]

I saw the dubbed version in the theater today and was quite happy with it. Though I've not seen the original language version yet, I'd imagine that they did a pretty good job of dubbing it- the dialog is fairly childlike at a number of points, and it really was quite good as a kid's film, the many children in the theater seemed to very much enjoy it. It kept them thoroughly enraptured and engaged throughout which is what I tend to call a 'success' in a kid's film. For the non-kids (at last not by what our birthdates say...) it was still a really good, fun film. I tend to agree that it's not Miyazaki's best, but it was a very solid and enjoyable addition to his stable that I don't regret going to see in the least bit and that I will happily pick up on Blu-Ray when it comes out so I can watch it subbed.

[nhyone]

I can't really rank Miyazaki's films. I like his earlier works, but I think his last good work is Princess Mononoke.

Tier 1
- Castle of Cagliostro
- Castle in the Sky
- Nausicaa of the Valley of the Wind
- Porco Rosso
- Princess Mononoke

Tier 2 (very slow pace; watch once in a long while)
- Kiki's Delivery Service
- My Neighbor Totoro

Tier 3 (no desire to rewatch until I forgot how bad they are)
- Howl's Moving Castle
- Spirited Away

His tier 3 stuff are really quite bad. Very good visuals, but the story makes no sense at all -- to me anyway.

[danth78]

Kiki's is definitely my favorite. I absolutely love it.

Nausicaa is great except for the messianic message that, if you're lucky, you will be the chosen one who is more important than everyone else.

I thought Porco Rosso was disappointing because the hero pilot only won his dogfights by the enemy being a bad shot or running out of ammo at the perfect moment. Don't like the luck=hero message.

Cagliostro was watchable but not as incredible as I had heard.

[Ingraman]

Nausicaa is great except for the messianic message that, if you're lucky, you will be the chosen one who is more important than everyone else.

I think that there was a little more than luck at work there. Her skills, knowledge and compassion played a little bit of a role, too.

I thought Porco Rosso was disappointing because the hero pilot only won his dogfights by the enemy being a bad shot or running out of ammo at the perfect moment. Don't like the luck=hero message.Win with luck, lose with luck? It's been a while since I last watched the movie (hoping for Blu-ray for my next watch, but if I have to wait too long...), but wasn't his only loss due to Curtis being lucky? Shooting down an airplane that's already falling from the sky can't be the most daring act or best way to show your abilities.

I think that Porco just puts in the minimum effort to do the job, and he could do more if he chose to do so. He's shot down enough planes and (likely) killed enough pilots in his past that he's likely choosing not to do so if he can avoid it.

Even if it's not as big a factor as you make it out to be, you don't like luck?